Slump meter for truck concrete mixers



March 6, 1951 H. c. VON SASPE SLUMP METER FOR TRUCK CONCRETE MIXERSFiled Sept. 15, 1945 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 HENR Y [LVUN EHE'F'E INVENTOR.

March 6, 1951 H. c. VON sAsPE 2,543,883

SLUMP METER FOR TRUCK CONCRETE MIXERS Filed Sept. 15, 1945 3Sheets-Sheet 2 HENRY [lVElN SHEFE IN VEN TOR. BY I I a March 6, 1951 H.c. VON SAS PE 2,543,383

SLUMP METER FOR TRUCK CONCRETE MIXERS Filed Sept. 15, 1945 3Sheets-Sheet 3 HENRY avmw 5125 FE I INVENTOR.

.crete.

Patented Mar. 6, 1951 Henry C. Von Saspe,fBound Brook, N; J assignor, bymesne assignments, to Worthington Pump and; Machinery; Corporation,Harrison, N. J., a

corporation pf Delaware Applicationseptember 15, 1945, Serialhim-616,520

This invention relates to truck or portablei-concrete mixers, and moreparticularly to ameter for controlling the water content of the concretemixture for providing the desired'or specified slump of the mixture atits point of use. i

An object of the present invention is to provide a slump meter whichwill assure the maintenance of specified slump in concrete mixture overvarious periods of time encountered between travel from a batching plantto a delivery destination.

Another "object of the present invention is'to provide a slump meter foruse on concrete mixers of the truck type which may-be set in accordancewith the distance to be traveled from the batch plant or pointof loadingto the delivery'destin'ation; and also in accordance with-atmospherictemperature so as to provide-an excess quantity of water in the tank ofthe mixer for mixingwith the-batch during travel to compensate forevaporation and-moisture absorption encountered during travel so thatthe concrete mixture'wi-ll be Within the consistency ofspecificationswhen delivered. With these and other objects inviewyas mayappear from the accompanyingspecification, the invention consists ofvarious features of construction and combination of parts, which will befirst described in connection with the accompany ing drawings, showing aslump meter-fortruck concrete mixers of a preferred form'embodying theinvention, and the features forming the invention will be specificallypointed'out in the claims. Inthedrawings: i Figure l is a-view in frontelevation of the improved slump meter'showing it appliedto the watertank of a truck concrete mixer. Y

Figure 2 is a View partly in section and partly in edge elevationof theimproved slump meter showing it applied to the water tank-ofaconcretemixer.

- Figure 3 is anenlarged view partly in section and partly in edgeelevation-.ofthe ir'iiproved slump meter.

In the use of truck concrete mixersythe true mixing drum receives itsload'of concrete-ingredients at a batch plant-or loading point fromwhich it travels to the destination of. use of the 'c'on- The distancefrom the-batch plantto the point of use ma be within a twenty-five tofifty mile radius, and, depending upon the season, at-

mospheric temperatures from zero 'toapproximatelylOl) F. may beencountered during the travel to the point of destination. Duringthetravel of the mixer, .water is'delivered into the drumhwhich rotates inthe usual well know! mani ner to mix the water and concrete ingredients.During travel under various cor'iditions, as above indicated, moistureabsorption and evaporation affects the slump contentof the mixture,causing it to fall below the standard specified tolerance of one-halfinch plus or minus in slump In short distances, this variance is notvital, but in longer disifii' ces it affects the slump content of themixture and causes it to fail to meet the specified requirements. v 1'The slump meter of the present invention comprises means for providingan excess quantityof water in the water tank in proportion to thedistance to be traveled and the temperature encountered during suchtravel so asto maintain the slump content of the concrete within thespecified tolerances at the point of delivery.

' The improved slump meter is shown in the drawings as applied to awater tank construction for concrete mixers which is shown in mycopending application Serial No. 587,528, filed April 10, 1945, nowPatent No.'2,52 6,520 of October 17', 1950. As disclosed in this'priorapplication, the tank !,-which it is understood, of course, is mountedon what is known as a truck or portable concrete mixer (not shown) isfilled-with water through a-filling opening 2, land the'wateris'dispensed from the tank! through the dispensing valve structure 3which is specifically illustrated and described in the above-mentionedapplication The quantity of water retained in the tank is controlled bythe adjustment of the overflow mechanism. so that no care need be takenin delivering the water to the tank, and neither need the water bemeasured, neither before nor after it is delivered to the tank.

The overflow mechanism comprises i a flexible overflow hose 4 having anoutlet 5 below the tank so that the water flowing therefrom will go toWaste; An inlet head 5 is connected" to the inner upper end of theflexible hose '4' anditis carried by the pivoted arm I. The pivoted armI is connected to the operating shaft 8 s'o thatby rotation of the shaft.8 the inlet head it will be positioned at various levels within'thetank I to control the quantity of water within the tank. Any

water in excess ofthe' waterindica'ted on the.

gauge glasses 9 and the position of the inlet head 6 will overflow fromthe tank through the overflow outlet 5. r

The present invention comprises the means for rotating the shaft 8 andaccurately setting the inlet head 6 so as to regulate within a practicaldegree. of accuracy the g allonage or the water 7 content in the tank'l;

The shaft operating mechanism o'm c lever II] which is keyed to theshaft 8 as shown at I I and has an operating handle thereon by means ofwhich the lever may be moved on its pivot over the outer face of thequadrant M. The quadrant M has indicia |5 thereon which indicates thegallonage content of the tank with the lever l0 and consequently theinlet head 6 at various positions.

As hereinabove stated, the slump of the concrete mix varies during thelength of time consumed in traveling from the batching plant to thedestination of use of the concrete, both due to absorption andevaporation. Therefore, the slump meter of the present inventioncomprises means to provide for the setting of the lever Ill and theinlet head 6 in proportion to the distance to be traveled and thetemperature encountered during such travel to provide an excess quantityof water in the tank to insure the proper slump of concrete mix at thepoint of use. For this purpose, a distance compensating lever or arm I6is pivotally mounted on the sleeve IT. The sleeve I! is mounted aboutthe shaft 8 and within the bearing l8 of the shaft, as clearly shown inFigure 3 of the drawings. The arm or lever |6 has an outer set ofgraduations I9 thereon graduated to indicate the miles of travel, and aninner set of graduations 29 to indicate the time absorbed during suchmileage traveled. A second arm or lever 2| is also pivotally mounted onthe sleeve H, and it has a set of graduations 22 thereon to indicateatmospheric temperature. Both the distance compensating lever or arm l6and the temperature compensating arm or lever 2| have threaded studs 23thereon on which are threadedly mounted locking caps 24 which engage theoperating lever IU. The stud 23 and the locking cap 24 carried by thedistance compensating lever l6 are movable in a slot 25 formed in thetemperature compensating lever 2| and in a slot 26 formed in theoperating lever lil, while the stud 23 carried by the temperaturecompensating arm or lever 2| is movable in a slot 21 formed in theoperating lever i0, so that the distance compensating lever I6 and thetemperature compensating lever 2| may be moved independently of eachother and of the lever H] to indicate, in connection with thegraduations 5, the distance to be traveled and atmospheric temperatureencountered during the time of travel so as to allow for the necessaryand desirable increase in the quantity of water retained in the tank Iwhen it is filled to maintain the proper slump of the concrete mixturewhen it reaches the point of use of concrete.

After the distance and temperature compensating levers l6 and 2| havebeen moved relative to the forward or front edge 21 of the lever H] toindicate the proper distances and temperature, they are clamped to thelever W by means of the clamping caps or nuts 24 so as to prevent theirdisplacement or consequent displacement of the inlet 6 during travel ofthe concrete mixer. The lever H] is locked in position relative to thequadrant l4 through the medium of a manually adjusted locking head 28which is threaded upon a bolt 29 to clamp the quadrant between theclamping portion 30 on the distance compensating lever and the backplate 3|. The back plate 3| is connected at its outer edge to thedistance compensating lever l6 by a suitable bolt and sleeve connection32, as clearly shown in Figure 3 of the drawings.

It will be understood that the invention is not to be limited to thespecific construction or arrangement of parts shown, but that they maybe widely modified within the invention defined by the claims.

What is claimed:

1. Means for regulating the quantity of water in the water tank of aconcrete mixer comprising an operating shaft, a gallonage indicatingquadrant, an operating lever connected to said shaft and movable oversaid quadrant, a temperature indicating lever movable relative to saidshaft and gallonage indicating lever, a distance indicating levermovable relative to said shaft and gallonage indicating lever, means forindependently locking said temperature indicating lever and saiddistance indicating lever in adjusted positions relative to saidgallonage indicating lever and said quadrant to position said gallonageindicating lever and shaft in position to provide a predetermined excessquantity of water in the tank over the gallonage indicated by thegallonage indicator.

2. Means for regulating the quantity of water in the water tank of aconcrete mixer comprising an operating shaft, a gallonage indicatingquadrant, an operating lever connected to said shaft and movable oversaid quadrant, a temperature indicating lever movable relative to saidshaft and gallonage indicating lever, a distance indicating levermovable relative to said shaft and gallonage indicating lever, means forindependently locking said temperature indicating lever and saiddistance indicating lever in adjusted positions relative to saidgallonage indicating lever and said quadrant to position said gallonageindicating lever and shaft in position to provide a predetermined excessquantity of water in the tank over the gallonage indicated by thegallonage indicator, and means for locking said gallonage indicatinglever in adjusted positions relative to said quadrant.

3. Means for positioning the regulating member in the water tank of aportable concrete mixer comprising a fixed plate having graduationsthereon in volumetric units, a shaft rotatably mounted in said plate,said shaft being capable of connection to said regulating member toactuate the same, a lever overlying said plate and fixedly connected tosaid shaft, a first arm rotatably mounted on said shaft and havinggraduations thereon in units of time, a second arm rotatably mounted onsaid shaft and having graduations thereon in volumetric units whichindicate the rate at which water is transferred between air and water atdifferent atmospheric conditions, means for fixedly connecting saidlever to said plate, means for fixedly connecting said first arm to saidlever, and means for fixedly connecting said second arm to said lever,said lever and said arms each having reference points thereon wherebythey may be connected in predetermined positions relative to each otherand to said plate.

4. An adjuster for the overflow member in the water tank of a portableconcrete mixer comprising first means attachable to the overflow memberfor moving the same, said first means hav ing a reference point thereon,a scale graduated in volumetric units and arranged to coact with thereference point of said first means to indicate the volume of water inthe tank corresponding to various positions of the overflow member,second means for indicating in volumetric units the probable variationin the water content of the slump in the concrete mixer due toevaporation or absorption of water during the period elapsing betweenloading of the mixer and discharging thereof, and third means forconnecting said first and second means in fixed position relative toeach other and to said scale in such a manner that said reference pointis oifset from the basic and desired water volume setting on the scaleby an amount equal to the probable variation indicated by said secondmeans.

5. In combination with a movable overflow member for the water tank of aportable concrete mixer, first means for indicating the volume of waterin the tank at various positions of the overflow member, second meansfor setting the overflow member at predetermined positions, a variablewidth compensator having sides thereof coacting with each of said meansto offset said second means from a predetermined position relative tosaid first means, said compensator being calibrated so that variationsin its width correspond to variations in the water content of the slumpin the mixer due to contact with the atmosphere, and means for fixingsaid compensator at a predetermined width to at least one of said means.

6. In combination with a movable regulating member for the water tank ofa portable concrete mixer, a scale having indicia thereon for indicatingthe specified quantity of water to be added to the slump in the concretemixer, means coacting with said scale for positioning said regulatingmember, a compensator having one side coacting with the indicia on saidscale and the other side coacting with said means to offset the latterfrom that position on the scale whereat the regulating member would bepositioned to provide the specified amount of water, said compensatorbeing of an adjustable dimension between said sides and having meansassociated therewith for adjusting that dimension so that it representsin terms of the scale indicia the precalculated transfer of waterbetween the atmosphere and mixer during the period between loading anddischarge of the mixer whereby said compensator offsets said positioningmeans by the amount of the calculated variation in the water contentwith the result that the regulating member is positioned so that thecombined quantity of water transferred between the tank and atmosphereand the slump substantially equals the specified quantity of water to bedelivered tothe slump.

'7. A regulator for adjusting the position of the regulating pipe of aconcrete mixer water tank comprising a plate member having an arcuatescale for indicating the specified quantity of water to be added to theslump in the mixer, a shaft rotatably mounted in said plate member andcapable of being connected to the regulating pipe to actuate the same, alever member fixed to said shaft and having an edge coacting with thescale to provide means for setting the regulating pipe at a specifiedvolume position, means for locking said lever member relative to saidplate member, a first rotatable arm having an arcuate scale forindicating the time between loading and unloading of the concrete mixer,a second rotatable arm having an arcuate scale for indicating the rateat which water is evaporated from the mixer under various atmosphericconditions, said arms being arranged so that the scale on one coactswith the edge of the other and with the scale on the plate member and sothat the scale on the other also coacts with the edge of the levermember, and means for locking said arms to at least one of said members.

8. In combination with a movable regulating pipe for-a fluid tank, amember having a scale for indicating the position of the regulatingpipe, a lever member having a driving connection with the overflow pipe,first means movable with said lever member and cooperable with saidscale for indicating the position of said lever member and saidregulating pipe, locking means for fixing the position of said levermember relative to said scale, parts movable relative to each other andto said members, said parts having graduations thereon and referencepoint means thereon cooperating with these graduations as well as withsaid first means and the member scale whereby said parts may be movedpredetermined amounts relative to each other and to said members, andmeans for locking said parts to at least one of said members whereby thedistance between the point of association of said reference point meanswith said scale and the point of association of said reference pointmeans with said first means may be fixed at a predetermined value.

9. Means for regulating the quantity of water in the water tank of aconcrete mixer comprising, an operating shaft, a gallonage indicatingquadrant, an operating lever connected to said shaft and movable oversaid quadrant, a sleeve rotatably mounted on said shaft, a temperatureindicating lever mounted on said sleeve, a distance indicating levermounted on said sleeve and movable independently of said temperatureindicating lever, means for independently locking said temperatureindicating lever and said distance indicating lever in adjustedpositions relative to said gallonage indicating lever and said quadrantto position said gallonage indicating lever and shaft in position toprovide a predetermined excess quantity of Water in the tank over thegallonage indicated by the gallonage indicator.

10. Means for regulating the quantity of water in the water tank of aconcrete mixer comprising, an operating shaft, a gallonage indicatingquadrant, an operating lever connected to said shaft and movable oversaid quadrant, a sleeve rotatably mounted on said shaft, a temperatureindicating lever mounted on said sleeve, a distance indicating levermounted on said sleeve and movable independently of said temperatureindicating lever, means for independently locking said temperatureindicating lever and said distance indicating lever in adjustedpositions relative to said gallonage indicating lever and said quadrantto position said gallonage indicating lever and shaft in position toprovide a predetermined excess quantity of water in the tank over thegallonage indicated by the gallonage indicator, and adjustable means forlocking said temperature indicating lever and said distance indicatinglever together in relative adjusted positions.

HENRY C. VON SASPE.

REFERENCES CITED The following referencesare of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 765,426 Herrick July 19, 1904931,359 Washburn Aug. 17, 1909 1,966,291 Gardiner July 10, 19342,236,347 Stancliffe Mar. 25, 1941

